


Nursing Eggsy

by DC_Derringer



Category: Kingsman: The Secret Service (2015)
Genre: Fluff, Harry is not dead, M/M, Pre-Slash, Sick Eggsy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-14
Updated: 2015-05-14
Packaged: 2018-03-30 14:37:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,382
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3940543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DC_Derringer/pseuds/DC_Derringer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eggsy is sent home with the flu under strict orders to be cared for. Obviously, Harry is the only one available to take care of him since his mum is on vacation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nursing Eggsy

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by me being gross with the flu, and hating everything, and wishing Harry would come take care of me. Eggsy is a lucky little shit.
> 
> Huge thanks to [stainedglasscurtains](http://stainedglasscurtains.tumblr.com/) for the wonderful beta because I have no idea how to write fluff.

“Eggsy, you look like shit,” Harry said, which woke Eggsy up immediately. He was sitting in Harry’s office going over details from a mission he’d finished a few days ago, but couldn’t recall what they’d just been talking about since he’d drifted off.

“Sorry, no, I’m fine,” Eggsy said hoarsely, sitting up in his chair as straight as he could, and forcing his eyes wide open to look like he was at attention. Fact of the matter was, he felt like shit; achy, tired, congested, and throat raw from coughing the night before. He felt another coughing fit welling up in his chest and struggled to keep it at bay under Harry’s scrutinizing eye.

“Flu’s making the rounds. I think you better head to medical for a check.”

“Just a little cold-” Eggsy tried to say, but that’s when the cough came up, wet and hacking, leaving him doubled up in his chair while it worked its way out of him. He was left with a mouthful of phlegm that he had no choice but to swallow back. He’d run out of his discreetly pocketed tissues over an hour ago.

Harry gave him a look that allowed no argument, and he was quickly marched down to medical with only quiet protests to which Harry paid no mind. 

~

“Definitely the flu,” the doctor pronounced. She’d only given Eggsy a cursory look, but it was obvious, even to Harry. “You either stay here on strict bed rest, or you go home and have someone look after you.”

“Home,” Eggsy said immediately. The thought of being stuck in his place of work, while sick, and under strict orders of rest sounded worse than a honeypot mission with some fat old bastard who smelled of cheap cologne and snogged with too much saliva. 

“He’ll need a lift home,” the doctor continued, eying Harry.

“I’ll make sure he gets there safely,” Harry said reassuringly, and took Eggsy by the arm to drive him back home.

~

Eggsy fell asleep in the car, mouth breathing against the window with a congested snore, and was just barely awake enough to stagger up the stairs to his flat. He fumbled with his keys until Harry took them and let him inside. Eggsy half-stumbled, half-ran to the living room couch and full on dived into it, crashing face first into the throw pillows and cuddling them like his life depended on it. 

Harry couldn’t help but chuckle, and set Eggsy’s keys on the coffee table before he looked around. Eggsy had a nice flat now that he shared with his mother and baby sister, with three full bedrooms, two baths, and plenty of shared living space, like the room he’d just crashed into. But there was something missing.

“Did your mother step out? I can wait until she returns,” Harry said.

“Took a holiday with Daisy,” Eggsy mumbled into his pillow. “Back next week…” Eggsy’s voice was drifting, half asleep already from the strain of walking from the car. It was a wonder he’d made it into the office at all.

“Right,” Harry said, a look of determination and resignation overcoming his features. Time to take account of things. First was a check of the medicine cabinet. In total there were children’s vitamins that looked like candy, half a bottle of aspirin, mouth wash, and an assortment of make-up products. Harry tutted and made his way to the kitchen. The fridge had a pizza box with one slice left, a number of condiments, and some milk that was about to spoil. Michelle Unwin must have been out for a few days already. 

Well, doctor’s orders had to be followed, Harry reasoned to himself.

~

Eggsy woke up several hours later disoriented and more congested than ever, with one nostril being utterly blocked up and the phlegm he’d built up from lying down trying to hawk its way up his throat. He coughed and hacked for a few minutes until he was mildly clearer, slightly more awake, and noticed that Harry was cooking in his kitchen.

“Harry, what’re you doing?”

“Making you chicken noodle soup.”

Eggsy pondered this for a moment, assuming his flu-induced haze of confusion was making this impossible for him to understand. Thinking was just too difficult right now.

“Why?” he finally asked.

“Doctor’s orders.” Harry said as he ladled steaming soup into a big bowl and carried it over to the coffee table. “You need someone to look after you, or else you have to go back to the infirmary.”

“I don’t need a nurse,” Eggsy said, staring at the bowl of soup. His stomach rumbled at him, reminding him he hadn’t eaten much that day, but that didn’t mean he wanted Harry around seeing him like this. He couldn’t help but feel embarrassed to be in that state in front of Harry, and just wanted him to leave so Eggsy could be disgusting by himself. “I’m a bit sick. Just need some sleep and I’ll be fine.”

“And run down to the market for food? And the pharmacy for medicine?” Harry let those words hang there, sinking into Eggsy. Just the thought of walking down the front steps, hell, even walking to the front door left Eggsy feeling woozy. Maybe if he ate, he’d feel a little better.

“You gonna stay over and feed me, put me to bed?” Eggsy asked, finally reaching for the bowl of soup and over-sized spoon. He shoveled the soup into his mouth clumsily, trying not to dribble too much, or moan with pleasure at how good it was. Who knew Harry Hart could cook like a champion?

“I’ll stay for a few nights, until you’re feeling better,” Harry said with authority. “I got my overnight bag while you were napping and have set up in the guest bedroom.”

“Just make yourself at home then,” Eggsy grumbled around mouthfuls of soup, trying to be cranky about this invasion of his home, but finding it difficult as he was filled up with Harry’s home-made soup. It was a stark difference from how he was usually treated when he was sick. His mother had always been too busy working to tend to him personally, leaving him with instant chicken noodle soup and lukewarm tea. Then when Dean came into the picture, he’d have been lucky to get even that. Better to suck it up and head to school sick than hang around the house any longer than he needed to.

“Gladly,” Harry said, looking very pleased with himself. He went back to the kitchen and returned with hot tea with lemon and honey, a small glass of water, and the filled Tamiflu prescription the doctor had given to Eggsy. “I want you to finish everything, and then take your medicine. I’ll be in the guestroom finishing paperwork if you need anything.”

Obediently, Eggsy finished his soup, though he told himself it was because it tasted good and he was hungry, not because Harry had told him to. Stubbornly, he sipped at his tea, but only finished half, feeling safe that he could claim the tea had gone tepid. But he eagerly gulped down the medicine, hoping for any small relief to his symptoms. He then turned on the television to something mind-numbing, got comfortable on the couch, and completely zoned out.

~

Eggsy woke up after the sun had gone down, with the only light provided by the television. He didn’t remember falling asleep, but knew exactly why he’d woken up. He was curled into a tight, aching ball on the couch, shivering from a rush of chills that wracked his whole body. He groaned and slid unsteadily from the couch. His feet were shaky under him, but by holding on to the back of the couch he could walk around to make his way to his bedroom, with his soft bed and the thick winter blankets. It was just a few feet off the living room. He could do it. 

He made it to the end of the couch, with that little effort making him dizzy, and was then faced with a problem. No more couch to lean against, and a good four feet of floor to the doorway of his room. Eggsy screwed up his face in determination. He was a Kingsman, wasn’t he? He’d saved the world. A little flu wasn’t going to stop him from getting to his bed. 

Mentally, he counted to three, then lunged, gracelessly, toward the door frame. He stumbled, knocked against a small table, which clattered loudly, then made it to the door frame before he grabbed it and slumped to the floor. Well, fine. He needed a little rest. Then he’d crawl into his bed. Well done. 

“Eggsy? What was that racket?” Harry’s head popped out of the room down the hall. OK, almost well done. Forgot about the damned nurse. Harry frowned and came down the hall. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“I was cold,” Eggsy said, and pointed weakly into his room where his warm, cozy bed was. 

“You should have called for me, you silly boy. Come on. Up you get,” Harry reached down and hauled Eggsy up under his shoulders, bearing all of Eggsy’s useless weight. Eggsy grumbled in protest, his head swimming from the movement, but then purred happily when he was dropped on the bed. He scrambled with all his strength to pull the blankets around him, making a messy, cozy nest.

“Eggsy, you haven’t even taken your shoes off,” Harry complained, pulling at Eggsy’s feet where they stuck out from the blankets and tugging off his oxfords. “And you’re going to wrinkle your suit. Take off the jacket at least.”

“S’too cold in here,” Eggsy said, letting his teeth chatter for effect as he tugged the blanket up over his head, breathing deeply through his mouth to heat the tight space underneath. It was ruined when Harry pulled the blanket away, letting cold air rush in, so he could pluck at Eggsy’s jacket buttons.

“Are you being deliberately bratty to try to scare me off, or are you really this helpless?” Harry scolded as he wrestled the jacket off of Eggsy, then tutted again. It was already wrinkled from his nap on the couch. He hung it up anyway so it could be pressed later. “Now take off your trousers yourself, or I will and you won’t like it.”

Eggsy obliged, but with his bottom lip stuck out stubbornly to show his distaste. He shuffled them off under the blankets, and then his button-up for good measure. He dropped them both on the floor, slightly pleased when Harry gave him a long suffering eye-roll and picked them up to hang as well.

“You’re getting close to beating out Merlin’s record of most miserable patient,” Harry said. After hanging up Eggsy’s suit, he started rifling through his drawers absently, tugging them open and shifting through Eggsy’s clothes.

“Hey, what’re you doing? Quit snooping around in there,” Eggsy grumbled. As if Harry invading his house wasn’t bad enough, now he was going through his clothes too? There were limits.

“Haven’t you got any proper pajamas?” Harry huffed. He tossed a loose sweater at Eggsy and kept searching while Eggsy eagerly pulled it on. It was one of his favorites, practically threadbare from too many washings, and therefore worn to perfect softness. Much warmer and more comfortable than his suit. Next a pair of hospital scrubs were tossed at him, leftover from a previous hospital stay after a Kingsman mission. “I suppose those will do. But now I know what to get you for Christmas.”

“You done prying?” Eggsy grumbled, pulling the scrubs on under the blankets and then tucking himself in tightly, wrapping the blankets under his legs and body so that he resembled a burrito. Finally, he was starting to feel a little warmer. 

“For now,” Harry conceded. “Do you need anything?”

“No,” Eggsy insisted, pressing his face into his pillow and closing his eyes. How could he possibly be so tired after sleeping all day? Somehow, lying on a couch and watching TV was exhausting. 

Harry rolled his eyes again and disappeared. A while later he returned with more water, the medication, and this time, a little decorative bell his mother kept in a cabinet with all her new dishes. “Ring this if you need anything. I don’t want you falling out of bed and hurting yourself because you’re too stubborn to be taken care of.”

Eggsy looked at the little bell, set just within his reach and smiled a little into his pillow. “Thanks Harry,” he mumbled as Harry stepped quietly out of the room to let him rest.

~

Eggsy woke up hours later drenched in sweat. He kicked off his blankets in a desperate attempt to escape the heat, but it wasn’t enough. He threw off his sweater, kicked off his scrubs, and laid there, sprawled out in nothing but his boxer shorts, panting from the heat. He rolled over to the cool side of the bed, and when that heated up, he flopped back to the other side. He reached for the water Harry had set out earlier, now room temperature, and gulped it down. It didn’t help. He wanted to slide out of bed and get into the bathroom for some nice cold water, but that was miles away. Miles and miles down the hall past the guest bedroom. He’d never make it. He looked to his window on the other side of the room. If he could just crack that open, get some cold air in there. But, it too seemed so far.

The clock next to his bed said it was only a little past midnight, but he couldn’t wait until morning. He was dying. Next to the clock was the bell Harry had left for him. Fumbling it in his hand, and gave it a few shakes. The little tinkling sound, which Daisy found so delightful, rang loudly in Eggsy’s ears, shattering the late-night silence of his house. He kept ringing it until he heard stumbled footsteps, and then saw a disheveled Harry at his door, robe half on, hair rumpled, sleep-lines on his face.

“What’s wrong?” Harry asked, his voice thick with sleep.

“Open the window,” Eggsy whined. “I’m boiling in here.”

Harry stepped into the room and put his hand to Eggsy’s forehead. “That’s your fever. I don’t think winter air will do you any good. But hold on a tick.”

Harry disappeared and Eggsy whined some more. He was going to burn up, or melt, and it would all be Harry’s fault. He barely noticed Harry returning, but then let out a happily burbled moan when sweet, cold, wetness touched his forehead. Harry had come back with a wet cloth and Eggsy grabbed it, stretching it out over his entire face and sighing with relief. “Ohhh, this is perfect Harry.”

Harry dabbed at Eggsy’s shoulders and then his chest, and when he retreated, Eggsy’s skin cooled as it dried. He was in heaven, snuggled up in bed, gently tended to with caring hands. It was a little surprising, but he didn’t think about it too much since he was currently being rescued from a feverish, burning death.

“Drink some water too,” Harry offered. Eggsy lifted the cloth away from his mouth, but refused to remove it from his face and tilted his head up just enough to drink from the glass Harry gave him, gulping down the cold water quickly at first, then sipping and savoring it. Harry left again, then returned with new, colder towels that Eggsy snatched up. Harry chuckled gently. 

“Nursing’s not so bad now, is it?”

“Mmm,” Eggsy hummed, more comfortable than before, thanks to Harry’s attentive care. He guessed it wasn’t so bad after all. “Sorry if I woke you up.”

“Don’t think of it. I’m here to take care of you. Call me when you need me, no matter what the time.”

“Mmm,” Eggsy hummed again in agreement. He stayed quiet for a moment, then considered something. “Harry, aren’t you afraid of catching my flu?”

“I took my flu shot, so I don’t think there should be any concern,” he replied absently, then he too fell into a moment of contemplation. “Didn’t you take yours?”

“Doctor said it wasn’t required because of my age, so I didn’t,” Eggsy said with a shrug. He’d never had a flu shot before, and had never gotten the flu either, so it seemed logical.

“You’ll be fine in a few days if you take proper care of yourself,” Harry said, patting Eggsy on the shoulder reassuringly.

“You mean if you take proper care of me,” Eggsy said, leaning into Harry’s hand.

“Then I guarantee you’ll be better in no time. Now, try to get some rest, and ring the bell if you need anything else.”

“Thanks Harry,” Eggsy said, giving Harry the best grin he could manage. Harry smiled back, lingered a minute as Eggsy started to drift off right in front of him, before he crept quietly from the room.

~

Eggsy made it through the night, alternately cold and hot, waking up unable to breathe through his nose, and his mouth cracked dry like a desert. He found himself wide awake at 7 am, all the napping from the previous day the likely culprit. Plus, there were sounds of Harry in the kitchen again, and delicious smells coming through his door. Being sick worked up an appetite, so, back in the throes of the chills, Eggsy stumbled out of his bedroom dressed in his sweater and scrubs again with his thick blanket wrapped around him.

Harry looked up at the shuffling sound and smiled. “Breakfast will be ready soon. Do you want to eat in the kitchen or on the couch?”

“Kitchen,” Eggsy said, his voice rougher than the day before, sorer from coughing all night. He slumped into his usual spot at the kitchen table, and greedily gulped down the juice Harry set in front of him. 

“If you’re up for it, you should shower after breakfast. The steam will help with your congestion. Or else a hot bath if you don’t think you can stand.”

“You’re not helping me wash,” Eggsy said firmly, embarrassment suddenly washing over him at the thought of Harry bathing him.

“Once. When Merlin was very, very injured. Never again,” Harry said, a dark look in his eye as he flashed back on some wretched memory. “If you can’t manage that on your own, then you should be back in bed.”

Eggsy sighed with relief, and then murmured happily when Harry set out a feast for him of scrambled eggs, sliced tomatoes and fruit, breakfast sausage, toast, and tea. He dug into the food eagerly, pausing only to breathe through his mouth while he ate, ignoring Harry’s slightly disgusted look as he chewed with his mouth open. Eggsy cleaned his plate, asked for more, and cleaned it a second time. Then he ate the leftover sausage and tomato on Harry’s plate as well, while Harry looked on, grinning.

“That healthy appetite will help,” Harry said once Eggsy finally finished eating. “Take your meds and hop in the shower.”

“Yes mum,” Eggsy teased, though he took his medicine obediently, and shuffled to the bathroom, shedding his blanket in the hallway and ignoring Harry’s huff of annoyance. Maybe he was starting to like this sort of treatment after all.

In the bathroom, he looked at himself in the mirror and pulled back instinctively. He looked worse than he had yesterday. Restless sleep had left bags under his eyes, his hair stuck up from sweat, and all the mouth breathing had left his lips chapped. It was a wonder Harry could even look at him, never mind be so caring.

Eggsy turned on the shower, setting the water as hot as it could go and getting undressed while he waited for it to warm up. A bout of coughing overtook him, and he slumped onto the closed lid of the toilet until the fit passed, leaving him dizzy and heaving for breath. He looked at the shower and reached in to turn the valve to fill the tub instead. Standing up didn’t seem that appealing anymore. With the tub only half-full, Eggsy slid in, letting the rushing water fill in around him with a happy sigh. The warm water felt wonderful on his aching muscles, and the steam filled his lungs, loosening his congestion like Harry had said. 

He moved slowly in the tub to reach for his shampoo and wash his hair. He then soaked for a bit again before reaching for the washcloth and soap to give himself a good scrub, rubbing away the dried up sweat, grime, and the feeling that he was covered in snot. Already, he needed a little rest and tilted his head back against the rim of the tub. Such little exertion tired him out.

There was a loud knock on the door accompanied by Harry’s urgent, concerned voice, “Eggsy? Did you fall asleep in there?”

Eggsy jerked awake, splashing tepid water all over the place, and cursing because, well, he’d fallen asleep in the tub and probably almost drowned. “No!” he insisted, though he knew it sounded like a lie. “Maybe… I’m getting out now.”

Eggsy shivered. The water had long since cooled and the relaxed warm feeling had left him. His eagerness for his bed was stronger than before. So he hauled himself out of the tub and dried off quickly, so he could pull his clothes back on.

“Leave the door unlocked next time,” Harry said, concern in his eyes, and the lightest reprimand in his voice once Eggsy opened the door. 

“Sorry, Harry,” Eggsy mumbled as he headed for his bedroom. Harry returned to his newspaper, sitting in one of the overstuffed chairs in the living room. Eggsy eyed his rumpled up bed, with the blanket Harry had replaced, and changed course. He grabbed the blanket and flopped out on the couch, he head closer to Harry’s chair.

“Don’t you have to go to work?” Eggsy asked.

“My duties as Arthur mostly consist of paperwork, footage review, and reports from Merlin. I can accomplish all of that remotely for a few days.”

“Would you do this for any of your agents? Nurse them through the flu like this?”

“Most of our knights are not stubborn brats who refuse to stay in the hospital when they need it, so no, I wouldn’t need to do this for any of them.”

“But would you?”

Harry contemplated that for a moment, looking at Eggsy thoughtfully before he said, “If necessary, yes.”

“So I’m not special?” Eggsy asked, pouting.

“You’re a very lucky brat is what you are,” Harry teased. “Next time I’ll order Merlin to look after you.”

Eggsy considered Merlin as a nurse. “He’d probably tranq me and use the time for vacation.”

“Exactly, so a little more gratitude please.”

“Thank you, Harry,” Eggsy said, in his most cloying, singsong voice. Harry accepted it and went back to his newspaper leaving Eggsy to turn on the television, though on low volume for Harry’s sake, flicking through channels aimlessly to try to find something even vaguely interesting on a weekday morning. 

~

Boredom was Eggsy’s worst nightmare. Not being allowed to do something always made him itch to do it, find the loophole and get away with a cocky grin. But the flu left him too exhausted to actually do anything, while still making him lose it mentally. Harry was no help either, as after he finished his newspaper, he disappeared into the guest bedroom to go online and make his presence at work known. 

“Ring that bell if you need anything,” Harry had said, and well, Eggsy certainly needed something, so he gave it a quick ring, waiting for Harry to come out of the spare room, looking curiously at Eggsy to see what he wanted.

“I’m bored,” Eggsy said petulantly, to which Harry replied with a long-suffering sigh.

“Read a book,” Harry said, and turned back to his room.

“Ain’t got any books to read,” Eggsy said, which was only a little bit of a lie. He had no new books to read, no books he wanted to read, and also, he didn’t really want to read anyway.

“Watch the telly.”

“Nothing’s on,” Eggsy whined, and that was completely true, as he’d already been through all the stations three times trying to find something, anything, that wasn’t soap operas or b-movies.

“Well do you want me to sing and dance for you?”

“Yeah!” Eggsy said, his eyes sparkling with delight, not because he thought Harry would do that. It was obviously a joke, but he wanted that back and forth, the smart-assed sarcasm that Harry was so good at.

“Tough shit,” Harry said, and Eggsy’s face fell, until Harry sighed with frustration and finally came into the living room and sat in the arm chair next to Eggsy. “I suppose I can take a little break from work and entertain you. Just an hour though,” he added sternly. “What do you want to-”

“Tell me a story!” Eggsy said eagerly.

“Eggsy,” Harry said, giving him a nonplussed look. “Playing up this sick child routine is getting a bit old…”

“No, a real-life story, about one of your missions. It’ll be a learning experience for me.” 

“Hmm,” Harry murmured, raising his eyebrows in thoughtful surprise. Eggsy made such a sincere request, so he tried to think of a story that might do Eggsy some good in the long run, but also entertain him. “I think your expectation for missions might be a bit high, considering your first involved saving almost everyone in the world. Most of them aren’t that grand.”

Eggsy sat up eagerly on the couch, clutching his blanket and looking at Harry attentively. 

“One of my first missions, for example, was nothing more than watching a drug dealer who was suspected of tainting the water supply in order to increase demand for his drug. As it turned out, he was not, and 3 weeks of surveillance in a VW bug were wasted.”

“Was this in the seventies? Did Kingsman wear velveteen suits? Did you have muttonchops?” Eggsy asked eagerly, teasingly.

“I’m glad you’re taking the heart of this story so seriously,” Harry said, deadpan, and then with just the smallest smile; “And no to the last two questions. I’ve never cared for facial hair of any sort.”

“But back to my point,” Harry continued. “My first mission was a dreadful bore. Just hours of sitting cramped in the car with only music to listen to. Then the defeat that it was all useless. He was nothing but an ordinary drug dealer. I’d felt like all my hard-earned training had gone completely to waste.”

“I’d feel the same way,” Eggsy said sympathetically.

“I’m sure you would. I begged off surveillance for months after that,” Harry went on. “Arthur, the one before Chester, had a bit of a soft spot for me-”

“Can’t imagine what that’s like,” Eggsy threw in, cheekily.

“Hmph, he had a soft spot for me and left the surveillance to other agents. A similar case came up, so it was passed to Bors. Ended up being an international plot of world domination, rather similar to your most recent exploit. Bors handled it single-handedly, and has been rubbing it in my face ever since.”

“Bors is a bit of a prick.”

“Bors is an enormous prick, and my only joy in being selected as Arthur is knowing I can lord it over him. But you never heard me say that,” Harry said slyly.

“Your secret will die with me. Now tell me another. Any embarrassing undercover missions? Merlin keeps alluding to some drag queen escapade but refuses to give me details.”

“Nor will he, if he values his life.”

“Just, were you in drag, or were other drag queens involved?”

“There was this one time I went undercover as a punk rocker in New York. Have you ever heard of CBGBs?” Harry said, ignoring Eggsy’s question and not very smoothly changing the subject to distract him. It did work though. Eggsy’s eyes lit up, and he was torn between pursuing the potential drag queens, or this other wealth of information that seemed just as implausible.

“There are pictures,” Harry said with a conspiratorial grin, and that was it.

“Yes, Harry! Fuck drag queens. I need to see this!”

Far more than an hour passed as Eggsy wheedled story after story from Harry with pleading eyes that Harry could not deny. Exhaustion had to win out before Harry could get back to his neglected work, leaving Eggsy slumped over, half-asleep while Harry had been in the midst of a story. He gently pushed Eggsy to lie down and wrapped him in a blanket, his touch gentle and lingering. When Eggsy was settled, he snuck back to the spare room to finish what he could while the boy napped, coughing and murmuring occasionally in his sleep.

~

After three days of care, Eggsy’s fever was down, his cough had mostly dried out, and he was starting to bounce off the walls, as though the many naps he’d taken had stored up energy for him to use later. Harry had given him strict orders not to come in for another two days, just to be sure, but he felt certain that Eggsy would be all right on his own for the rest of his convalescence. 

So, Eggsy woke up that morning to see Harry’s bag packed up and set down by the front door. Breakfast was on the kitchen table, and Harry was dressed up in his suit, hair combed, freshly shaved, and completely ready to make an appearance at the office. Eggsy felt his heart fall just a little. 

“Kinda got used to having you be my nurse,” he said, not hiding his glumness when he sat down to eat. He was rather proud of himself, showered and properly dressed, and no longer feeling like death warmed over. 

“Perhaps I’ll consider a career change,” Harry said with his usual dry humor. Eggsy smiled.

“What am I going to do all day? I’ll get bored. Might sneak into the office.”

“That hacking cough does not lend itself to sneaking. I think you can manage a few days caring for yourself at this point.”

“Dunno. Might have a relapse. Crack my skull in the tub, or starve when I can’t make it to the kitchen. Might be good if someone still popped by to check on me.”

Harry drummed his fingers on the table contemplating. “It is unlikely that you’ll actually take your medicine, or keep up on your fluids…”

“I am an incorrigible child after all.”

“I suppose I’ll have to check in on you after I finish work. Surely you can survive until dinner time?”

“I will try very hard not to perish while you are out.”

“I will be extremely disappointed if you do, in fact, perish,” Harry said with a fond smile. He stood up then to put on his jacket, grab his bag, and make his way to the door.

“Hey Harry, you’re a liar, you know that?” Eggsy said, as he watched Harry leaving.

“Yes,” Harry said, unperturbed by Eggsy’s accusation, as he continued to get ready to leave. “What lie did you catch me at?”

“You said you’d do this for any of your knights, but that’s just not true, and you know it,” Eggsy said with more bravado than he felt. Still in his seat, he had to look up and up at Harry, who was just impossibly tall while he was sitting down.

“You’re very observant, Eggsy.” Harry said, looking impressed, though not very surprised. “I’ll have to put you on the next available surveillance mission. Once you’re better though. So keep resting, and I’ll see you tonight.” There was a pause, thoughtful, just a bit uncertain, and then Harry bent down and laid a gentle kiss against Eggsy’s lips. A bare brush, dry, and brief, before Harry straightened again, and without another word, stepped out of the house.

Eggsy smiled, touched his lips, and wondered how he would while away the hours until Harry came back to him.


End file.
